Christopher Wemp Period 3 2/10/05

A Teenage Mind
Jon Mentras awoke suddenl ! his skin en"eloped in a thin #oat o$ sweat% &Where am '() *e thought% *e $ound himsel$ tu#ked under the +lankets o$ a +ed whose +lankets had +een thrashed and ki#ked around! lea"ing them une"en and +arel hanging onto the mattress% Jon ,ui#kl s#anned his en"ironment and gathered that he was in a hospital% -lan#ing at a #lo#k on the wall! Jon gathered that it was the morning% &.$ what da () Jon/s thoughts pro#essed slowl % 't was so hard to think% A heada#he pounding in his head at a slow! stead rate didn/t help either% 0#rat#hing his s#alp in pu11lement! the 12 ear old teenager struggled to remem+er how he ended up at the hospital% 0uddenl ! his memor was re3u"enated and! like a tidal wa"e! $looded him with memories so +ad that he wanted to s#ream! throw an o+3e#t! 3ust do something to relie"e him o$ his anger and sho#k% Jon $ound himsel$ doing ,uite the opposite% *e was $ro1en in his +ed! remem+ering what had happened the night +e$ore% Hey Jon, youre comin to that party tonight, right? Brian asked. I wouldnt miss it! I shot ack enthusiastically. It was the truth. I wouldnt ha!e missed that party "or anything in the world. Just a out e!ery single on o" my "riends was going to e there, and the good times would roll. #r so I thought. $he party was to e held at Brians house, simply ecause his parents were !isiting relati!es on the other side o" town, and would reside in a hotel during the night. %lright, cool! Brian e&claimed. It starts at ' pm.

' pm came around (uicker than I e&pected. In "act, I was eating dinner when my clocks hourly alarm signal went o"". )lancing down at the hot and delicious chicken pot pie on my plate, I decided I could a""ord to e a little late. Hal" an hour later, I stepped out o" my house. $he cold, starry night was the per"ect setting "or the per"ect party. I happily dro!e mysel" to Brians house and marched in the "ront door. I was taken a ack y what was happening inside. Beer cans littered the ground, popcorn kernels sprinkled the rugs, and *+ teenagers were stomping on them, dancing to the eat o" a ass hea!y song. %s I !entured inside, I arely a!oided an encounter with a male my age that staggered past me and "lopped onto a couch. He was drunk. ,ery drunk. $he poor teenager was murmuring a out topics so random that e!en an attendee o" an asylum would ha!e thought him insane. -etting my car keys on a co""ee ta le, I hurriedly !entured into the crowd o" dancers and sought out Brian. $o my distaste, Brian had an open eer can in his hand and had a lopsided grin that made him also look cra.y. Brian, theres someone on your couch thats really sick. /e need to get him some help. %h whate!er dude. Hell e "ine. Brians speech was slurred and impaired. $alking to him was o" no help. I was sho!ed ackwards y a girl carrying a plate o" hapha.ardly arranged eer glasses. I made eye contact with her and wondered how she was a le to make the glasses alance at all.

Hey, wanna e0 Be"ore she could "inish her sentence, she hiccupped loudly, threw hersel" o"" alance, and went crashing to the "loor. Her e!erages "ollowed, soaking her and e!eryone that was close to her accident. $his party is out o" hand, I thought to mysel". 1y idea o" a good time didnt in!ol!e getting so drunk that I couldnt stand straight. -omeone was going to get seriously hurt. 2ot wanting to call the police and rat out my "riends, I simply walked out o" the house. 1y heart skipped a eat when I saw my cars headlights "lash on and the motor gun. How did it start? 1y memory retraced my steps, and I grimly remem ered relie!ing mysel" o" my car keys. 2ow, "rom what I saw, 3 people were in my car, undou tedly drunk. I sprinted "or the window, hoping I could stop the insanity the mentally impaired were creating. $oo late! $he car screeched out o" the dri!eway in re!erse and pulled out into the street. I desperately ran a"ter the car, screaming my lungs out as I ran. $o my horror, Brian craned his neck out the window and wa!ed at me. His stupid grin plastered his "ace. Hey, Jon! How "ast can this thing go? 4*+? 45+? B6I%2! -$#7! 8#9:: );$ 8#96-;:< =I::;>! 8#9:: =I:: 8#96-;:< %2> 8#96 7%--;2);6-! Brian laughed uproariously and pushed the accelerator down to the "loor. I pumped my legs and chased the car as it pulled away, !isions o" rescuing my "riends in mind. $hey were instantly shattered as the car swer!ed and slammed into me, throwing me onto the ground. I skidded on the asphalt, lea!ing a trail o" skin. 1y head hit the

ground. Hard. Blackness egan to tunnel my !ision. 1y last memory was seeing the car careen out o" control and smash into a near y house. $he car "olded in on impact, lea!ing no sur!i!ors. Jon remained in his +ed! +ut he had +rought his knees up to his #hin and was hugging them as he reli"ed the pain$ul e4perien#e% *is $our $riends were gone $ore"er% -one +e#ause o$ horri+le 3udgment! and gone +e#ause o$ stupidit % Wh were those teenagers like that( The thought the had all the e4perien#e in the world% The thought the had enough maturit to take on an o$ li$e/s #hallenges% 't was true that the were +e#oming oung adults! and needed more $reedom% 5ut that didn/t mean the were to assume that the were real adults! nor did it assume that the #ould drink al#ohol or that the #ould dri"e sa$el in an #ir#umstan#e% The needed to reali1e that +e#oming a oung adult was a time o$ #hange! not a time o$ master % A single tear rolled down Jon/s $a#e% *is $riends had +rought so mu#h to his li$e% *e would ne"er $orget them% *e would ne"er $orget%